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Friday, October 31, 2008 | PERSONAL
It seems that I've picked up a bit of a bug as today I wasn't quite feeling 100%, but I made the most of it by processing through the photos from yesterday and catching up on some much needed sleep. While working on the photos today I realized that many of the photos that I've placed on the blog have been of the people here in Mali, but all for good reason... they're unlike any other people I've ever encountered. Sure, you occasionally run into the random guy who just isn't a morning person, but other than that many of the people seem to completely stop whatever it is that they're doing to connect with one another... definitely something that's lost on us back in the states.
Well, I'll stop rambling as I know that you'd rather see the shots than read what I have to say!!! Enjoy. |
| Somehow making a fool of yourself translates in every language... |
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Thursday, October 30, 2008 | PERSONAL
It's hard to believe that a week has come and gone, but I'm trying to soak in every moment I am given in this beautiful country. This day was full of excitement as it began by taking a walk into the local market where every Thursday the streets are completely packed with just about every nick-knack, doo-dad, and even a what-cha-ma-call-it. Mamadou was gracious enough to take me there and help me purchase a tea set like the one I posted about a few days ago. We both spent much of the day photographing the local people and culture here, so I have just under a thousand images to go through for today. Being that it takes quite a bit of time to get photos posted online (if you're a photographer, you totally understand what I'm saying!), I at least wanted to show you a few shots from today while I process the remainder of images tomorrow morning.
I cannot stop photographing the landscapes here... they're so incredibly gorgeous. |
| Later in the evening I was privileged to photograph a local soccer (or futbol) game. These guys play so well and have skills like you've never seen. I actually set the camera down and just watched for a few minutes and wouldn't you know it, just then one guy did a bicycle kick (where you essentially do a backflip while kicking the ball upside down)... I could've kicked myself for not having my camera glued to my eye!!! |
| Like I said, there are so many photos to process through from this day, so I'll try and slip a shot or two into the next few posts... thanks for your patience, prayers, and kind words. This has been an incredible trip... one that I'll never forget. |
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Wednesday, October 29, 2008 | PERSONAL
Today was a bit unusual from other days here in Mali because I didn't actually go to the hospital to take photos, but instead spent my time with another new friend, Mamadou. As it turns out, Mamadoo lives in the house across the street and is a photographer himself! Actually, if you'll notice the last photo on yesterday's post (the one with the gate and "photographe" and phone number on it) that's his place. Who knew I'd meet a fellow photographer all the way out here?
So, being that we're both photographers and I had a backup digital camera, I thought why not go shoot together??? After all, he knows the place better than I do, and it'd be a fun experience... something different for sure. I hopped on the internet (the place where we're staying has wireless... can you believe that?!!) and googled a few translations so that he knew exactly what I was asking when I mentioned that I wanted to shoot together. He didn't say much, but he smiled and nodded several times, so I took it as a yes. Here's the man himself... |
| Mamadou on the left and a few kids running after us on the right. They didn't know I was taking their photo 'cause I held the camera by my side and snapped a few shots while we were walking. Needless to say, they were surprised when I turned and showed them the photo. |
| Mamadou and I walked around quite a bit and he showed me the area, but I didn't take too many photos until we were back on the road... just then, a boy rode by on his bike shouting something that even Mamadou didn't understand. I figured, hey, if Mamadou doesn't understand (or care) neither do I... we just started laughing...fun times. |
| This little one kept yelling to her friends, "too bamboo, too bamboo"... translation, "pastey white guy, pastey white guy." (just kidding, it means French/white man) I guess I need a tan or something. |
| ... and *right* before we turned to head back, these guys rode by us, eventually stopped and turned around, and waited for us to both take a photo. That took me by surprise, and turned out to be my favorite shot of the day. |
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Tuesday, October 28, 2008 | PERSONAL
Today was a rather short (but great) day of shooting. As with the previous day I photographed much of the hospital, but since there weren't any procedures scheduled I decided to call it a day and work on some other aspects of my time here.
While the physicians, nurses, and med students mad their rounds I tried to hang out in the hallways (so as to stay out of the way) and I noticed out of the corner of my eye this woman staring at me, so I held the camera low to my side, hit the focus button, crossed my fingers, and took the shot... I like what came out as a result... not *completely* in focus, but still worth sharing with you. |
| My dad (on the left), and Dan (on the right) making rounds... |
| The gentleman on the right seemed to enjoy having his photo taken, so after a bit of time with him I showed him how to use my camera. |
| This is the result of me showing him how to use the camera... sometimes having your subject out of focus isn't always a bad thing--as in this case, where I was a sweaty mess! |
| Right after my photo was taken this woman stood right up, pounded her chest and pointed at me to take her photo. Now it's fairly unusual for women to step up like this in their culture, but apparently they warmed up to me enough for her to be so bold... I didn't mind a bit. :) |
| Then her husband stood up immediately after her photo was taken and requested to have his photo taken as well... did I mention that I love it here??? |
| ... a group of guys waiting under the shade of a tree. |
| This is Marck (yes, with a "c") and he's now one of my good friends here on the hospital grounds. He's a great worker here and when he saw that I was taking everyone's photo he likewise requested to have a little photo shoot of his own. He even led me over to a grassy area to take the photo... gotta love that! |
Soon after Marck's impromptu photo shoot I walked over to where another gentleman was making tea. Now you have to understand, this isn't tea that we have back in the states... it's tea on steroids. Truly the strongest tea you'll ever have. It's actually similar to having a shot of espresso! Pictured on the left is the stove that they place the coal on to heat up the tea pot.
Drinking tea here is an event. The process (as explained to me) is that the tea is brewed three separate times and sugar is added each time that it is brewed. So the first batch is strongest and more bitter, second batch is a bit weaker and sweeter, and the third batch is very weak and incredibly sweet. Dan (one of the physicians here) jokes that the tea will kill off any intestinal bugs that you might have!! |
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Monday, October 27, 2008 | PERSONAL
Today was the first full day of being at the local hospital and experiencing everything firsthand. It was a bit daunting to try and communicate with the local people as their dialect is quite a bit different from the French language... I guess knowing Spanish doesn't quite work here. What I found that did work was a quick smile and a wave of the hand, and we were pretty much buddies.
I love it here. The people are so genuine and joyful and I think that if you "talked" with them (I use hand motions... I probably look like a mime trapped in a box), you'd say the same.
So here's a quick shot of the main building... the women and children's hospital. |
| Making rounds in the morning... |
| Luther, the gentleman on the left, speaking with one of the patients... |
| The guy on the left quickly became one of my "buddies"... funny how you don't need to completely understand a foreign language to communicate. |
| Lydia, one of the nurses, attending to 1 of 3 sets of triplets... I'll say that again... 1 of 3 SETS of TRIPLETS!!! |
| ... and so far, this is my favorite shot from the trip. The children here are adorable. |
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